A Thousand Years
by mAnGa ObSeSsEd PaNdA
Summary: Rukia's execution and rescue  moments, in chronological order  from both Renji and Rukia's perspectives. How they feel during the commotion and the aftermath.  Only makes sense if you've read up to Chapter 187  Songfic.


_Summary_: Rukia's execution and rescue (bits and pieces, in chronological order) from both Renji and Rukia's perspectives. It skips a lot but if you've read up to book 21 (chapter 187) you should be able to follow along. How they feel during all the commotion and the aftermath.

Panda: Hey, so you guys probably don't know me, because I normally write Shugo Chara fan fiction. Anyways, I started reading Bleach about half a year ago and now I'm obsessed. And I love absolutely RenRuki so that's probably what I'm going to write a lot of.

Renji: You talk too much.

Panda: Shut up or I won't post this fan fic. And then what will you do?

Renji: -sweatdrops- _Disclaimer: Manga Obsessed Panda does not own __Bleach__._ (Thank goodness.) _Or "A Thousand Years"_.

Panda: I heard that! In any case-

Rukia: Please read and review! Thank you!

Panda: Yeah, what she said. xD Enjoy~!

Note: In case you didn't read the above summary, let me remind you that these are all flashes of scenes and they won't really make sense unless you've read up to chapter **187 **or Volume **21**.

"**A Thousand Years" by Christina Perri**

Rukia gazes out into empty space, handcuffs digging into her wrists as she waits. Waits for her execution day to come. Waits for it all to end. Waiting. Waiting. The clock ticks and she knows her seconds are numbered. _What do you do when you don't know how much longer you have to live?_

_Heart beats fast_

_Colors and promises_

_How to be brave_

_How can I love when I'm afraid to fall_

"Goodbye," she whispers, a tear slipping down her cheek. _I'm not afraid. I'm not afraid..._She swallows hard. _What a lie._ She doesn't want to die. Not like this. Not now. The sky is so blue today. So blue and bright and amazingly deceptive. A perfect day. A perfect day and she is going to die. Her heart pounds in dreaded anticipation. So this was what the end felt like.

_But watching you stand alone_

_All of my doubt suddenly goes away somehow_

"Renji!" Her breath catches in her throat at the sight of her best friend, wounded, bloody but amazingly _alive_. "I'm so glad you're alive!" Forget the fact that she's been saved by an illegal Soul Reaper who is probably Seireitei's most wanted. Forget the fact that none of them will make it out of Seireitei without being killed. Renji has come back for her, fought to get to her, and he is _alive_.

_One step closer_

"Ichigo, you idiot!" Rukia shrieks. She can hear Renji yelling at the orange-haired boy as well but it sounds muted, like the world is in slow motion. Despite the lethargy, her heart speeds up as she stares at the man who is clutching her so hard and shaking with fear, adrenaline, and relief. _Ichigo, you're an idiot, a complete idiot, and a rash fool, but thank you for letting Renji save me._

_I have died everyday waiting for you_

_Darling don't be afraid I have loved you_

_For a thousand years_

_I'll love you for a thousand more_

"Renji, let me go! Put me down! We've got to help Ichigo!" Rukia protests, attempting to squirm out of Renji's arms though he is running at such a fast pace and even though in reality, she never wants to leave him. She knows it was worthless to argue with him, because he is as stubborn and tenacious as herself, but she has to make sure that this wasn't a dream, that he isn't some illusion about to slip from her grasp yet again.

_Time stands still_

_Beauty in all she is_

_I will be brave_

_I will not let anything take away_

_What's standing in front of me_

"Nobody thinks badly of you, Rukia. Stop blaming yourself. Depend on me." Renji holds her a little bit closer. They are going to make it out of this mess, he can feel it. _'Even if you die, don't let her go,'_ he recalls Ichigo's words. What an idiot. He isn't going to let her go. _That_ would kill him. Anything else, he could take. Leaving her, after he finally had her back in his arms, would be a fate worse than death.

_Every breath_

_Every hour has come to this_

"Don't be sorry." He rolls his eyes. She always blames herself for the inevitable. "Don't thank me, either." How can she thank him after all this? How can she thank him after he had basically forced her to accept the Kuchiki clan's offer of adoption, after he had pushed her away? He has spent far too long regretting that to be thanked _now_. And _now_ was the time he is going to redeem himself. This is what he trained for. This is the reason why he had worked so hard to become Vice Captain. _All for her_.

_One step closer_

"What did you say, Captain Aizen?" Renji freezes but his heart continues to thump loudly. He must have heard the captain wrong, he _must_ have. There is no way...

_I have died everyday waiting for you_

_Darling don't be afraid I have loved you_

_For a thousand years_

_I'll love you for a thousand more_

"Renji!" Rukia gasps in horror as Renji's blood splatters the ground. _I'm not worth this. I'm not..._ She clutches his torn Shihakusho to keep herself from trembling violently. She doesn't know why Captain Tosen had brought them here. She doesn't know why Captain Aizen wants Renji dead. All she knows is that she doesn't want Renji to get hurt anymore. "Please, Captain Aizen, I'll-"

_And all along I believed I would find you_

_Time has brought your heart to me_

_I have loved you for a thousand years_

_I'll love you for a thousand more_

"I told you to shut up, Rukia." Renji directs his glare at the Fifth Squad Captain. "I'm not letting her go." _I'm not letting her go ever again._ His mouth twists into a snarl and Aizen merely looks amused. Well, Captain Aizen could believe that Renji is joking, but if the Captain tries to even _touch_ Rukia, he will experience some serious pain. Renji clenches Zabimaru in one hand and cradles Rukia in the other. Zabimaru, he knows, could be repaired if the hilt remains intact. Rukia, on the other hand, is irreparable and irreplaceable.

_One step closer_

"We only get one shot, so don't miss it." Renji tries to sound confident as he whispers to Ichigo. He knows, though, that Rukia can hear the thudding of his heart and feel how his arm shakes uncertainly. But he can't let that deter him. He has to do this. For Ichigo, for everyone that attempted to rescue Rukia, for himself, for _her_. He has to fight.

_One step closer_

Rukia cannot tear her eyes from the motionless bodies on the ground, the earth soaked with blood-_their blood_. Captain Aizen's spiritual pressure proves so intense she cannot stand up but even if the pressure lessened, she still wouldn't move. They couldn't be _dead_. They had come so close and yet victory danced out of their reach. _Ichigo. I _knew _I twisted his fate beyond fixing_. But even more importantly, _Renji!_ She wants to stretch her fingers to him, hold him tight, heal him with what's left of her spiritual energy. She's not scared for her own life, not even as Captain Aizen pulls her roughly to her feet. She's more concerned for the lives that were lost because of her._ I'm not worth this._

_I have died everyday waiting for you_

_Darling don't be afraid I have loved you_

_For a thousand years_

_I'll love you for a thousand more_

Rukia sits by Renji's mattress, hovers really, despite Captain Unohana's gentle advice to lie down and recuperate. She has already learned that Byakuya will recover just fine, now she has to see if Renji will as well. _Then_ and only then can she rest easily. Captain Unohana had said that if he wakes up soon, it would be a good sign of recovery. She touches his cheek lightly, barely brushing the skin. "Why did you get more hurt than me?" she mutters. It doesn't make sense, why so many people had gotten injured on her behalf and yet she was nearly unscathed. She watches his chest rise and fall unsteadily. "I wish it had been me instead of you."

_And all along I believed I would find you_

_Time has brought your heart to me_

Renji stirs, eyelids flutter open. His dark eyes lock onto her amethyst ones and he manages a painful looking half smile. His lips move but only a rasping sound emerges. He clears his throat, wincing at the slight movement. "Rukia.."

"Renji!" Rukia whispers. Her hands begin to shake and tears form in her eyes.

"I'm glad it wasn't you," he tells her in a soft voice. "I'm glad it was me."

"You nearly died!" she scolds him, though her heart is lightening with every second that she spends realizing that he _will_ heal.

"And I would do it all again if it meant saving you."

"I'm not worth it." Finally, she says the words that she's been thinking out loud.

"Yes, you are." And he says it with such affirmation that she can't help but believe him.

Now the tears start to fall. "You're an idiot." She gently strokes his hair. "Now, go recover. With you and Nii-sama both out of commission, who _knows_ what will happen to your company?"

He smiles at that. "Yes ma'am," he murmurs, closing his eyes once more. She begins to leave the room, to follow Captain Unohana's orders and get some rest for herself. "Rukia." She stops and looks back. He stares at her and he looks so vulnerable that she is sure she can read his mind and vice versa. "I'm glad you're alive."

She walks back to him and squeezes his hand. "I'm glad you're alive too."

"But I meant it, you know. I would die a thousand times again if I died for you."

"I just told you that I was happy you were alive and now you're telling me you want to die?" she teases. She shakes her head. "I don't want you dead, Renji." She takes a deep breath then bends down and kisses his cheek. "I love you, you idiot."

He gingerly stretches out his hand and caresses her cheek. "I love you too."

_I have loved you for a thousand years_

_I'll love you for a thousand more_

* * *

><p>Panda: I was originally going to make it entirely flashbacks but then I realized that I wanted an actual, definite ending, so the end is my own.<p>

Rukia: I like it. -hugs Renji-

Renji: -blushes and hugs back-

Panda: Thank you so much for reading! Please review! Reviews are love! I enjoy hearing everyone's opinion, so even if you didn't like this story, then please tell me (and possibly give me suggestions on what I could work on). Thank you again! :)


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